DC has announced today care of Blastr that they have yet another new Gotham-based title coming out in November. This of course comes hot on the heels of two new Gotham-based books and a “Batgirl” relaunch, because DC Comics could basically have all their books set in Gotham and I think most fans would be fine with it.
Coming in as the 14th book from DC to circle Batman and his home, the new series is titled “Gotham By Midnight.” Written by Ray Fawkes (whose stunning “The People Inside” is out this week) and illustrated by Ben Templesmith (after a successful Kickstarter for his book “The Squidder,” being published in single issues by IDW), the book follows the Midnight Shift, described Gotham’s answer to The X-Files, covering cases that are outside of what Batman would normally cover and led by Detective Jim Corrigan. Of course, fans of these comics both prior and post- New 52 will know that Jim Corrigan has a nightlife as the Spectre, the Spirit of Vengeance and God’s wrath, so that certainly adds a nice secret twist to the mix. The team for the book beyond Jim Corrigan will involve faces both old and new for Gotham fans, including Lisa Drake (another detective), Dr. Szandor Tarr and their “religious consultant”, Sister Justine.
Primarily a horror book, Fawkes had this to say about Gotham’s relationship to the book as a setting:
Gotham City is a pretty sick place, and also a wonderful place; one of the greatest cities in the DC Universe. The tact that some of the characters in this book take is that people like The Joker, Two-Face and Batman may be symptoms of something wrong with Gotham, and that may have a supernatural root. For me, the city is very Gothic, dark and shadowy, and it’s sort of the perfect setting for things that creep in the night.
The series seems like a natural fit for what could be done within Gotham, and having Ben Templesmith at DC Comics is certainly a win for them. Templesmith’s art is perfect for this series, and the supernatural detective drama is certainly something that Templesmith has played with in the past. With DC really pushing their Gotham-related properties right now, this seems like a good one to have in the corner.
The series launches in November.
